Chapter Text
It was the little red dragon keychain that caught Patsy's attention. The ring of keys along with it jingled in her hand as she picked them up. She looked around to see if anyone was walking by on the quiet road that might have just dropped them. It was cold that January morning and the gray skies looked like they would open up at any moment. The wind made Patsy shiver and she brought her scarf up over her nose and mouth as her feet guided her towards her friend's apartment complex.
'Oh, there you are.'
Patsy looked up and spotted her friend Trixie, the blonde fastening the last of the buttons on her coat as she prepared herself to venture out into the cold with Patsy. The redhead however was too cold to give a salutation. Behind Trixie was a woman similarly bundled up looking worried, her dark fringe sticking out from her knitted beanie with her matching mittens. Patsy looked curiously at the woman as she watched her frantically dump the contents of her handbag onto an old table next to the lifts.
'My neighbor here has misplaced her keys. You didn't happen to see…' Trixie’s blue eyes landed on the set of keys that Patsy held out in her hand and her eyes widened in excitement. 'Oh! Delia, are these them? I think Patsy's found them!'
This Delia person had moved on to rummaging through her grocery bag, but immediately looked up, beaming upon recognizing her lost set of keys.
'Oh, you're an angel!' she said, and scooped up the keys from Patsy's open palm.
Patsy had been about to utter something, some kind of reply, anything to keep her from looking like the dumbstruck fool she felt like after having what she contested to be the most adorable dimpled smile that had ever been cast in her direction. She wanted to say something along the lines of ‘You’re welcome’ or ‘No bother’ but, if it wasn’t the smile that kept her speechless, it was something else. Specifically, it was the rather pleasant, albeit odd, burning sensation on her arm. It was as if something were being sketched into her skin with a quill pen.
Patsy remained frozen, petrified with her jaw clamped with an iron grip. She couldn't move, couldn't breathe, and managed to only stand there helplessly as she watched Trixie help Delia collect the contents of her handbag.
She knew what was happening, but she couldn't believe it.
Her? This person? She was it ?
Patsy's eyes were locked on Delia's retreating figure as she gave another thankful wave and made her way up the stairs and out of earshot. Patsy didn't dare utter a syllable until the sound of footsteps disappeared in conjunction with a door slamming a few floors above.
‘Well,’ Trixie sighed, throwing her scarf over her shoulder, ‘thanks for that. Shall we?’
Patsy barely heard her, and remained standing still even as Trixie approached the doors to the lobby, but stopped short of walking through when she noticed her friend was not following her.
'Patsy? What on earth is going on with you?’ Trixie looked her friend up and down and focused in on her face. ‘Look as if you've seen a ghost.'
Slowly, Patsy turned her gaze to her ever increasingly worried friend and looked at her helplessly. This only made Trixie huff impatiently.
‘Patsy I’m going to slap you if you don’t say something.’
Patsy finally felt safe enough to relax her jaw enough to utter a few syllables.
‘I… think Delia is my soulmate,’ she whispered.
Trixie’s face contorted in confusion and she looked utterly gobsmacked, blinking several times. ‘Ok, when I said say something I wasn’t expecting that!’
Patsy certainly wasn’t expecting this either.
Curious, she pulled the scarf from around her mouth and she undid her coat, shrugging it off until she was able to tug on the sleeve of her shirt, her arm still thrumming with a warmth and sensation that she had to admit was pleasant and terrifying at the same time.
Oh, you're an angel appeared inscribed into her arm in pretty cursive, the loopy letters just slightly raised on her skin.
'Oh! ...Oh my.' Trixie brought a hand to her mouth. 'Delia is...she said…'
'Yeah.'
The two women stared at Patsy’s arm silently for a moment, Patsy still processing just what this all meant for her. Her life was suddenly on an entirely new trajectory without her consent and she couldn’t quite wrap her head around it. She only looked up when she noticed her friend, the blonde badly hiding a wide toothed grin behind her clasped hands as her sparkly blue eyes looked back at her with excitement.
‘Ooh , Patsy,’ Trixie gushed like an auntie about to smother their nieces and nephews with unwanted hugs and kisses. ‘I am so happy for you!’
Patsy frowned, feeling anything but. She felt like she was about to have a panic attack.
‘You have been single for-ev-ah-’
‘God,’ Patsy mumbled through gritted teeth.
‘-and practically out of the blue your soulmate, your actual soulmate, just appears. People travel all over the world looking for their one and only and yours just happens to be living right here in London! You must feel so elated and in love-’
Patsy rested her palm against the wall to steady herself. 'I think I'm going to be sick.'
'Oh, nonsense. This is wonderful,’ Trixie began walking towards the stairs and turned when Patsy failed once again to follow her. ‘Well, don’t just stand there, we need to tell Delia the good news!’
Trixie reached out and grasped Patsy by the arm, nearly dragging the unwilling woman through the lobby and up the stairs to the flats.
'But what about Barbara?' Patsy huffed, dragging her feet as much as she could to prolong the inevitable. They did owe it to their friend at the very least to let her know they were going to be late. Though if Patsy were honest with herself, she might not make it at all.
'She can wait! This is too important!'
'Some friend you are.'
'Sush! You'll thank me on your wedding day.'
Trixie stopped on the second floor and looked around, a finger to her chin in contemplation.
'I know she's on this floor but I can't remember which flat…’
The ever growing teather that tugged Patsy's heart towards Delia knew just which door she was behind. Feeling embarrassed that her emotions were taking over, Patsy hung her head in shame and pointed her finger. Trixies eyes followed.
'Number 3?'
Patsy silently nodded.
Trixie was unable to contain her delighted squeal as she latched onto Patsy's arm. 'Eee! This is so exciting!'
Trixie gave a firm rap with her knuckles on the door, and within moments Delia appeared before them again, looking pleasantly surprised.
'Oh, hello there.'
'Hi again,' Trixie beamed, ‘ so happy to see you’ve made it safely back into your flat.’
‘Ok,’ Delia gave an amused laugh. ‘Thanks?’
‘My friend here and I were just having a little chat in the lobby and the most exciting thing happened and, well, I’ll let her explain.’
Delia and Trixie’s attention turned to Patsy, and the taller woman imagined that her face matched the color of her hair just then. She remained stoically silent, instead averting her eyes from Delia's big, blue, and curious ones, and feigned interest in the chipped paint on the doorframe or the spiderwebs forming in the dark corner of the ceiling.
Delia leaned forward towards Trixie, looking worried. ‘Is she OK?’
‘Oh, Patsy,’ Trixie growled, releasing Patsy and placing her hands on her hips. ‘Well? Go on then, if you’re not going to say anything you can at the very least show her!'
Patsy made no motion to do anything and Delia looked back at them with an inquisitive eyebrow raised.
'Dare I ask?’
Again, Patsy did nothing and Trixie swatted her friend on the arm. 'You just going to stand there and keep her waiting?'
Patsy took a deep breath in and out through her nose, thoroughly embarrassed and increasingly wanting no part in this. Or so her brain told her. Her heart wanted something completely different, but she was going to prove to it that she was still capable of making her own choices, fate be damned!
She glared at Trixie, who looked back at her challengingly, and then promptly turned to leave.
'Oh no you don't!' Trixie grasped Patsy by the collar of her shirt and pulled her back, nearly strangling the taller woman in the process. 'She's got a right to know, Pats!'
'Can you two just tell me what's going on?’ Delia implored, bringing her fingers to the bridge of her nose as if she were fighting off a tension headache. ‘My anxiety can't handle all this back and forth.'
The mere notion of causing Delia any pain or discomfort sent a stinging sensation through Patsy's chest, a mistake she'd made that she needed to correct immediately. The intrinsic, most primal part of her brain that she mostly kept tamped down was now annoyingly nagging at her to protect this woman, not hurt her. Still nervous, still scared of how she would react, Patsy did her best to push those feelings aside, and finally tugged at her sleeve, holding out her arm for Delia to see.
The brunette's eyebrows raised and her cheeks turned pink.
'Oh, um… wow.’
'See?’ Trixie grinned, once again clasping her hands together to, what Patsy could only assume, prevent her from squealing with joy. ‘I told you this was exciting!’
'Well she doesn't look too thrilled about it.' Delia smirked, but Patsy could sense a hesitation in her expression. She looked nervous. Patsy wished then that she could speak without risking saying the wrong thing. She would tell her to not take how she was acting personally.
‘That’s because she’s stubborn. Come on, Patsy. I wish you would see this as the happy occasion it is!’
Patsy, of course, remained silent.
'I can't believe you're not going to say anything!'
'I don't think that's how this works,' Delia interjected.
'What do you mean?'
'Well she can't just say anything ? It has to be the right thing.'
'Well if she's truly your soulmate, whatever comes out of her mouth next is sure to be your mark!'
Delia crossed her arms and leaned on the doorframe, eyeing Patsy.
Subsequently, the redhead felt the heat rise in her cheeks. She could deal with an uncomfortable silence, but the staring was another sort of torture.
‘That is of course if she’s ever going to speak again,’ Trixie rolled her eyes.
'Hmm. I guess we'll never know.’ Delia shrugged indifferently, and motioned to shut her door. ‘Oh well. See ya’s.'
Patsy's body moved before her brain could tell it not to, and she firmly placed her open palm on Delia's door, preventing her from shutting it. Delia’s gaze was on Patsy’s hand and followed the path across her arm to meet Patsy’s eye.
'Oh, so you do have something to say?’
Patsy removed her hand from the door like it burned her, wondering why she had done that. She was never so aggressive normally but the idea of Delia shutting a door in her face right now did not sit well with her.
Delia gave a bit of a defeated sigh, as if yielding any fight there may have been in her. 'May as we'll come in for tea,' she said, opening the door wide and stepping aside. 'Both of you, now, come on.'
So, they entered.
Delia's flat was small, probably the best someone could do on their own with the limited inventory London had that was anywhere near affordable. Patsy looked around and liked it immediately. It was cozy, lit by the soft daylight filtering through the white curtains. There was no television, only a recliner next to a small table with a stack of books and a standing lamp. Plants hung from hooks on the ceiling and photographs of friends and family adorned the walls, some were maps that were framed of places that perhaps held some significance to Delia. There was a sofa that looked well used, a blanket and a cushion resting on one side with more books and magazines scattered about. Patsy couldn’t help but pick up the cushion that was white with the little red Welsh dragon stitched in the corner. It wasn’t so much the cute embroidery that caught her attention, but the smell.
She brought Delia’s cushion to her nose and took a deep breath. She felt embraced by this scent, consumed. The smell of Delia made her feel safe here, relaxed. Like the world just on the other side of that door wasn’t so cold and dreary and dangerous.
A snicker brought her back to reality, and Patsy cracked open an eye to see Delia looking back at her, a hand covering her mouth.
The redness in her cheeks crawled to the tips of Patsy’s ears, and she quickly placed the cushion back where she found it.
‘Are you going to be OK in here?’ Delia asked, no longer bothering to hide her smile.
Patsy gave a curt nod and stood still until Delia disappeared around the corner into the kitchen. There was a firm thwack of Trixie’s hand on her arm.
‘Could at least speak to her before you start acting all weird and cute?’ she hissed .
Patsy shrugged off her friend and walked through to the small kitchen. She watched as Delia cleared the table of old post and newspapers with the puzzles page open and half done. Patsy smiled endearingly, imagining Delia sitting there eating her jam on toast and penciling in the crossword of the day.
'Sorry for the mess,’ Delia said shyly. ‘I obviously wasn't expecting guests.’ She tucked the papers into the recycling bin and moved to fill a kettle with water.
‘Nonsense, Delia. We're very grateful to you for welcoming us into your home, isn't that right Patsy?'
Patsy glowered at her friend and really wished she would stop goading her into speaking. If this Delia person really was her soul mate she certainly wasn't going to bugger it up by saying the wrong thing.
The two women sat at the tiny table, Trixie unbuttoning her coat as she settled in. Patsy draped her scarf and coat onto the back of her chair. As she made herself comfortable, her eyes were drawn to Delia, watching as the woman reached high up on the shelf for an assortment of random and differently shaped coffee mugs that looked to have been collected over several years. She was moved to want to get up and help her but she didn't want to risk accidentally speaking. Trixie however caught Patsy’s gaze and by the look on her face she seemed to think that Patsy's thoughts were anything but on being helpful.
Once again she frowned at her friend and crossed her arms, forcing herself to look at the assortment of well used pots and pans dangling from hooks over their heads.
There was a comfortable silence in the kitchen as Delia placed their mugs and tea bags on the small table and poured in the hot water. Trixie pulled her mug towards herself and tapped her fingernails on her mug as her tea steeped, her eyes darting back and forth between Patsy and Delia to watch them interact with one another.
Patsy refrained from glaring at her friend and instead shyly turned her attention to Delia, the woman's gaze directed at her arm.
'Can you show me again, please?' Delia finally asked.
Patsy pulled up her sleeve once more and held out her arm for Delia to view.
'Did it hurt?'
Patsy shook her head.
Slowly, Delia reached out, but stopped herself, pulling back.
'Can I…?'
Patsy nodded and fought to control her heartbeat pounding frantically in her chest at the feather light touch of Delia's fingertips over the words. Her words.
'I suppose you can't tell me what it felt like?' she asked.
Patsy thought for a moment and then motioned her left hand over her right arm as if sprinkling magic fairy dust over it.
'So… a tingling sensation?' Delia asked.
Patsy nodded, and then gulped down a lump in her throat when Delia took her palm and gently grazed it over the length of her arm. The touch electrified all her nerve endings and she had the most pleasant tingling sensation crawl up her arm and around her head.
'I've heard it's sometimes easier to find your person when they're ready to be found,' Trixie remarked.
Patsy nearly jumped out of her chair as she had forgotten her friend was even there.
‘So, you know, that must mean you two are ready,’ Trixie added, wiggling her eyebrows. She sipped her tea as Delia sat back in her chair and put some distance between her and Patsy, which Patsy noticed immediately and didn’t like very much at all.
‘I suppose…’ Delia said, ‘though I very much doubt Patsy was… erm, prepared for it.’
Patsy looked back at her, concerned. There was hesitation and uncertainty in Delia’s voice and body language. Her own mind and body compulsively wanted to comfort Delia, and she instinctively reached out to her, placing her hand over Delia's.
Delia smiled up at her and placed her hand on Patsy’s cheek, ‘My, aren’t you sweet.’
Patsy closed her eyes at the touch and without even realizing it, leaned into Delia's hand and nuzzled against it.
Delia laughed, her hand moving to run her fingers through Patsy’s ginger hair. ‘Oh my, you’re just like a little puppy, aren’t you?’
Patsy was very much enjoying these sweet pets on the head as Delia giggled beside her, until reality politely coughed beside them.
‘Shall I leave you two alone?’ Trixie inquired, grinning.
Delia yanked her hand away and instead cupped her tea as Patsy merely glared at Trixie.
‘Sorry.' Delia fiercely blushed from behind her mug of tea. ‘I think it’s the bonding that’s supposed to happen after… you know.’
‘Oh? Already?’ Trixie blinked between her friend and Delia. ‘I thought that only happened after both parties got their mark.’
‘So did I, but she’s giving off a crazy amount of pheromones that are kind of… pulling me in,’ Delia remarked, looking incredibly embarrassed.
‘Oh is that what that is? Gosh, I was wondering why I was feeling so amorous. Think I might ring up that Mr. Aylward tonight and finally take him up on that drink.’
Trixie continued to stare dreamily up into space as she sipped her tea, while Patsy was only able to look at hers, swirling around the amber liquid in its mug.
She felt guilt for unwillingly manipulating Delia’s feelings like that, but it’s not as if she could help it. She also felt ashamed that she was so bonded to Delia only after knowing her for mere minutes, and she could feel it growing stronger by the second. Dependence on another person was not a state to which Patsy was accustomed, and yet suddenly she was nearly one and the same with Delia . She needed her like flowers needed the sun, and without her smiling adorably in her direction Patsy felt like she would wilt away and die.
Patsy groaned to herself. This was ridiculous. She couldn’t even talk to the woman. If Delia had any idea what was happening within Patsy, would she even want to be bonded to her at all?
‘Ah, well,’ Trixie sighed, ‘I suppose we can only get so far so long as she's not willing to talk. Perhaps we should just move on to meet Barbara in the west end, Patsy?’
‘Oh, erm, right.’ Delia shyly tucked her hair behind her ear. ‘I wouldn’t want to hold you up.’
‘You’re quite alright, Delia. I’m sure this is a lot to process for the both of you.’
‘It’s certainly… something,' Delia replied, then looked to Patsy. ‘I think, once we’ve both had some time to sit with this for a bit maybe… we can get together and talk about next steps?’
Was Delia suggesting they take things slow? Was Patsy capable of doing that right now when her heart and mind and body were pulling her towards this woman and she was using every bit of her strength to not just give in and leap across this table at her?
Patsy managed to smile and nod, and that seemed a sufficient enough response for Delia to be at ease.
‘I think that’s a wonderful idea,’ Trixie replied as she rose from her seat. ‘Thanks again for tea, Delia. I'll try to talk some sense into my friend here and see if I can get her to open up.’
Trixie donned her coat, but paused as she wrapped her scarf around her neck when she noticed Patsy hadn't budged.
'Well Patsy, aren't you coming?'
Patsy remained motionless, her brain telling her that it was clearly time for her to leave and yet also telling her that leaving Delia sounded like the worst possible decision she would ever make in her whole life.
She chanced a look over to Delia as she felt her eyes on her, and saw the woman looking back at her curiously. Delia tilted her head and gave a sympathetic smile.
'You don't want to leave, do you.'
Patsy looked down at her fingers in her lap and bashfully shook her head.
‘Patsy, I know you don’t want to leave but we really must go and meet Barbara for the show. She’s holding our seats for us.’
Delia rose from her seat and rested a hand on Patsy’s shoulder.
‘Come on. I’ll walk you to the door.’
The gentle instance from Delia that it was time to go was what motivated Patsy to also stand and put on her coat and scarf, as much as she was against the idea. Her legs still managed to carry her to the door, but stopped short of leaving. She looked back at Delia, needing to be sure that Delia really wanted her to go. What if she could help in some way? What if Delia was hurt and she had no one to call on?
‘Hey,’ Delia said softly, as if she could feel Patsy fretting, ‘if it makes you feel any better, I have no plans to leave my flat. I’ll be safe and sound in here and you’ll have no reason to worry. Go and be with your friends. Go and enjoy this show. I’ll be alright.’
Patsy nodded sadly, and slowly followed Trixie through Delia’s front door.
‘Oh, Pats?’
Patsy turned to look back at Delia to see the woman holding something out to her. It was the cushion with the little red dragon stitched in the corner.
‘You seemed to like this so I figured you can take it with you so, you know, you don’t miss me as much.’
Patsy took the cushion and held it carefully in her hands as the door to Delia’s flat clicked shut behind her. She swore to herself right then and there as she brought it once more to her nose and inhaled deeply, that she would love and cherish this cushion and protect it with her life.